1Bike Handling Skills Competition
for Under 14s and Under 16s
The Cycling Ulster Off-road Commission is organising a skills competition for youth riders in the Under 14 and Under 16 age groups (male and female). This is a new set up for 2015 and has been based on the skills competition at the Inter-regional Mountain Bike Championships. These events will take place at the same venue and date as the Ulster Cross-country races. The competition will start just after 2 pm and will involve a series of skills areas for riders to compete on. Each station has 3 parts which get progressively more challenging. If a rider fails at part 1 then he/she cannot continue to part 2 at that station. If a rider fails at part 2 then he/she cannot attempt part 3. Riders only get one chance at each station. The stations are not time restricted. A rider earns 1 point from each completed part = 3 points maximum per station.
Riders should have flat pedals on their bikes to take part. The bike used has to be the same as per the cross-country race with no adjustments to seat post height etc.
Round 1 – 8 March 2015 – Rostrevor
The first of the skills competitions took place at the first round of the 2015 Ulster XC Series hosted by Dromara Cycling Club at Kilbroney Park in Rostrevor. There were 5 stations set up: Bottle pick up, Side lift, Circle hop, Riding in Squares around bottles and the wheelie challenge. More riders had a practice on the stations than actually went ahead to compete. There were just 3 who took on the challenge. The results are shown below:
| Riders | Squares | Side lift | Wheelies | Bottle pick up | Circle hop | Total | |
|
Adam Duff (U16) |
1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10 | |
| Drew Armstrong (U14) Xmtb McConvey Cycles |
3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 10 | |
| Lee Harvey (U14) Xmtb McConvey Cycles |
3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 10 |
Specifications of the stages:
Bottle pick up – 1 large water bottle, 1 small water bottle, 1 chain oil bottle. Feet must not touch the ground once the test has begun. Bottles must be in the upright position at the end.
Side lift – increasing size of obstacle to hop the bike over. Front wheel over first then rear wheel. Start from alternate sides. Bike must remain within the defined area around the obstacle. The rider must not put his/her foot down once they begin the station.
Circle hop – competitors have to ride into the circle (7 foot in diameter) then hop the bike around 90 degrees. The rider then rides out and then back into the circle to hop the bike around 180 degrees. Finally the rider would re-enter the circle and hop his/her bike around 360 degrees. Riders are not permitted to put their foot down once the test has begun.
Riding in Squares – 3 parts with 4 bottles places at the corner of a square. The first part has the bottles 1.4 metres apart, the second part has the bottles 1.2 metres apart and the final square has the bottles 1m apart. Riders are not permitted to put their foot down once the test has begun.
Wheelie Challenge – lines were drawn with the first part 2 metres wide, then a gap of 2/3 metres for the rider to return the front wheel to the ground. The second part was 4 metres wide with a further 2/3 metres gap to return to 2 wheels before the final part which was 7 metres long. Riders are not permitted to put their foot down once the test has begun.
Round 2 – 12 April 2015 – Colebrooke
The second round of the skills competitions took place at the Ulster XC Round 2 hosted by Caldwell Cycles at Colebrooke Estate, Fermanagh. There were 5 stations set up: Bottle pick up, Side lift, Circle hop, Riding in Squares around bottles and the wheelie challenge but this time all the skills areas were indoors, inside a large shed on a concrete floor in front of spectators! There were just 4 who took on the challenge with the first of our female competitors having a go. The results are shown below:
| Riders | Squares | Wheelies | Bottle pick up | Side lift | Circle hop | Total | |
|
Adam Duff (U16) |
3 | 3 | 2.5 | 3 | 3 | 14.5 | |
| Craig McCarthy (U14) Xmtb McConvey Cycles |
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Lee Harvey (U14) Xmtb McConvey Cycles |
3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 11 | |
| Niamh Skelly (U16) Carn Wheelers |
1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Round 3 – 31 June 2015 – Lady Dixon Park, Belfast
The third round of the skills competitions took place at the Ulster XC Round 3 hosted by Xmtb McConvey Cycles at Lady Dixon Park in Belfast. There were 5 stations set up: Bottle pick up, Side lift, Circle hop, Riding in Squares around bottles and the wheelie challenge. The skills area was set up in front of the sign on tent and attracted some spectators including some very interested parents who were after the measurements so that they could get their young riders to practice more at home. There were 6 riders who took on the challenge. The results are shown below:
| Riders | Squares | Wheelies | Bottle pick up | Side lift | Circle hop | Total | |
|
Adam Duff (U16) |
1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 13 | |
| Ethan Creighton (U16) Xmtb McConvey Cycles |
1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | |
| Emma Elder (U16) Carn Wheelers |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Lee Harvey (U14) Xmtb McConvey Cycles |
1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | |
| Drew Armstrong (U14) Xmtb McConvey Cycles |
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | |
| Andrew Gordon (U14) Carn Wheelers |
0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |